10. Unlimited Air Time

Why It's Here: Always tricky to guard, Rajon Rondo utilizes a Jared Sullinger pick to open up a lane to the hoop.

He drives right, picks up his dribble and beats his original defender to the spot. Then, just when it looks like he might be blocked, he scoops the ball up and under the outstretched arms of the defender.

It capped off a solid performance for the 26-year-old who finished with seven points, nine rebounds, 11 assists and three steals on the night.

9. Better Late Than Never

For starters, Kevin Garnett displays the kind of interior defense that the Celtics have seemingly forgotten to play this season. Here, he emphatically denies the Bucks’ Beno Udrih an easy bucket, then proceeds to let him know what he thought about that attempt.

The ball just so happens to bounce into the waiting arms of Rajon Rondo, who fires up a prayer from just beyond half court.

Unfortunately, although he drains the shot, Rondo got it off just a bit too late.

8. Christian Laettner Who?

With only 1.5 seconds remaining in the quarter, Rajon Rondo hurls a pass in the direction of Kevin Garnett. The ball hits Garnett right in the numbers, giving him just enough time to turn to his right and drain a high-arching fadeaway right before the buzzer.

7. Made You Look

Following a steal from Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo calls for the ball in transition. As he nears the top of the key, Rondo puts his phenomenal court vision on full display.

Pause the video at 0:11. If you look closely, you’ll notice that Rondo’s head is completely turned to the right, in Pierce’s direction. Also, you’ll notice that the minute he begins to slow his dribble down, he captures the attention of not one, not two, but three Jazz defenders inside the paint.

While Utah is fixated on Rondo, Brandon Bass continues his run and slips behind the defender. Meanwhile, Bradley continues to drift out to the left uncovered.

Now, Rondo is presented with two high-percentage opportunities. After making a wild move only he can make, Rondo fakes a pass in Bradley’s direction. The defender covering Bass (No. 20) is fooled and bites towards the wide-open Bradley. Though he hesitates just slightly, it’s enough time for Rondo to swing the ball underneath to Bass for the easy bucket.

Seriously, people who underestimate the importance Rondo plays for this team need to watch this play and realize he makes similar plays nearly every game.

5. Don't Forget Your Stuffing

Why It’s Here: By now we are all familiar with Avery Bradley’s superior on-ball defending.

But it is his pursuit after being beaten by his man that makes him stand out from the rest.

Here, Dwyane Wade gets the better of Bradley and seems to be cutting with an open lane to the basket. However, Bradley sticks closely with him and perfectly times his leap, swatting Wade’s attempt right back down to the ground.

Sure, the play ended up with a Shane Battier three-pointer, but credit has to go to Bradley for hustling to deny the Heat an easy bucket.

3. Special Delivery!

Why It’s Here: We have already featured a couple Rajon Rondo plays. However, this one easily takes the cake as the best of the bunch.

Taking the ball from the top of the key, Rondo fools his defender with a crafty spin move. As he goes up for the shot, he instead sends a deadly accurate pass to a wide-open Ray Allen in the corner for the three.

What stands out here is how the Celtics take advantage of the fact that the entire floor fixates on Rondo once he enters the paint.

Pause the video at 0:07. Here you can see that all five Warriors on the court are focused on Rondo. As he completes his spin and moves further into the paint, at least three of them attempt to defend his shot. This includes the defender assigned to mark Allen. As the defender loses his mark, Greg Stiemsma steps up to set a pick, freeing Allen up on the wing.

2. Hook, Line and Sinker

Why It’s Here: Surprisingly, this is Paul Pierce’s first appearance on the countdown. But as they say, we have saved the best for last.

Throughout his career, Pierce has been notorious for stepping up when it matters most. Whether it’s to tie the game or to win it, you can bet Pierce will be the first one willing to take the shot.

Here, in Game 5 of a deadlocked 2-2 series in the Eastern Conference finals, Pierce controls the ball with under a minute to go. Knowing full well that he has no intention on passing, the other four Celtics on the floor spread out, isolating Pierce and LeBron James.

The whole arena, including James, knows that Pierce wants to shoot. However, there’s nothing anyone can do from preventing him from draining a cold-blooded three-pointer to seal the game.

It was a huge shot for Boston, as it moved them only one game away from yet another NBA Finals appearance.